The Zeeuws Vocaal Ensemble will give a memorial concert on February 4 in Kruiningen, one of the hardest hit Zeeland villages during the flood disaster, 70 years ago. The choir works together with the municipal museum for this project.

“Lest we never forget” is a phrase that we often encounter at a memorial. The erection of a monument is the function of this concert. With the programming we want to create a musical monument as a Zeeland chamber choir. On the one hand, the choir sings about the water with all its dangers, but also its opportunities and beauty. On the other hand, it focuses on the future: how do we deal with each other, with nature and water in times of climate change? How do we sing about the hopeful message of the future? All these elements come together in the programming:

Psalms Requiem – Daan Manneke (1939)

Daan Manneke is a survivor of the flood disaster, living in Kruiningen at the time. He saw one of his best friends drown. Decades later, when he was asked to compose a Requiem in response to the death of a musician’s daughter, he did not hesitate for a moment. It has become a personal Requiem in which its own history has been incorporated. Manneke will be present on February 4 and will give an explanation of the Psalmenrequiem.

On the program: Requiem of Psalms by Daan Manneke, works by Arvo Pärt, Johannes Verhulst,Henrick Gorecki and Joseph Rheinberger